Environmental Geochemistry of Heavy Metal Contaminants in Soil and Stream Sediment in Panzhihua Mining and Smelting Area,Southwestern China

Mining and smelting activities are the main causes for the in creasing pollution of heavy metals in soil, water body and stream sediment. An e nvironmental geochemical investigation was carried out in and around the Panzhih ua mining and smelting area to determine the extent of chemical contamination in soil and sediment. The main objective of this study was to investigate the envi ronmental geochemistry of Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Cu, Pb, Zn and As in soil and sediment and to assess the degree of pollution in the study area. The data of heavy metal concentrations reveal that soils and sediments in the area have been slightly c ontaminated. Geochemical maps of I\-\{geo\} of each heavy metal show that the co ntaminated sites are located in V-Ti-magnetite sloping and smelting, gangues d am. The pollution sources of the selected elements come mainly from dusts result ant from mining activities and other three-waste-effluents. The area needs to be monitored regularly for trace metal, especially heavy metal enrichment.

Eco-Environmental Geochemistry of Heavy Metal Pollution in Dexing Mining Area

An eco-environmental geochemical investigation was carried out in and around the Dexing mining area to determine the concentrations of heavy metals in the surface water, sediments, soils and plants. The main objective of this study is to assess the environmental situation and evaluate the transferring of heavy metals from mining activities into the food chain. Some samples of water, sediment, topsoil and plant were collected along the Lean River in the Dexing mining area. The total concentrations of Cu, Pb, Zn, Cd, and As were determined by AAS, and Hg was analyzed by cold-vapor AAS. Some indices such as ‘contamination degree’, ‘geoaccumulation index’, and ‘biological absorption coefficient’ were used to assess eco-environmental quality. The investigation indicated a highly localized distribution pattern closely associated with the two pollution sources along the Le’an River bank: one is strong acidity and a large amount of Cu in the drainage from the Dexing Cu mining area; and the other is the high concentrations of Pb and Zn in the effluents released from many smelters and mining, processing and extracting activities in the riparian zone. Results from the investigated localities indicated, at least in part, that some problems associated with environmental quality deterioration should be solved in the future.

Plant Pb Contents in Elevation Zones of the Changbai Mountain National Nature Reserve, China

Typical plants and soils of four elevation zones, mountain tundra （Zone A）, Betula ermanii forest （Zone B）, mountain dark coniferous forest （Zone C）, and mountain coniferous and broad-leaf forest （Zone D）, along the vertical gradient of the northern mountain slope of the Changbai Mountain National Nature Reserve, Jilin Province, China, were sampled to study the relationship between plant and soil Pb, and to compare the Pb levels in typical plant types within the same elevation zone. The Pb contents in the soil and plant samples were measured by using a flame atomic absorption spectrophotometer. The results showed that the average plant Pb contents of the four plant elevation zones were lower than the average worldwide level, except for Zone B. Compared with the average level in China or the average worldwide level, the soil Pb levels of the four plant zones were higher, with Zones D and B having the lowest and highest averages, respectively. Plant Pb levels fluctuated from the upper to the lower zones, in a pattern of low-high-low-high, which was the same as that of the soils in the four zones. Furthermore, plant Pb was closely related to soil Pb. Depending on the plant species and plant parts, large differences were found in the Pb levels of typical plants within each zone. In Zone A, Vaccinium uliginosum and Rhododendron redowskianum had higher Pb levels than the other plants. In Zone C, the Pb levels in the branches of both plant species were higher than those in the leaves, which was contrary to Zone D. In Zone B, the Pb levels in the plant parts varied greatly with plant species.